Foot-deck-based vehicles such as scooters are a popular form of transport and recreation. Some of these foot-deck-based vehicles employ lean-to-steer mechanisms for enabling a rider standing on a foot-deck thereof to steer by shifting their center-of-gravity laterally. Such lean-to-steer mechanisms have a wheel axis (typically the front) that can pivot about an oblique axis and that is biased by a biasing element towards a position in which it is parallel with the foot-deck. The biasing force exerted by the biasing element determines how the wheel axis responds to shifting of a rider's center-of-gravity.
While this mode of steering can be very intuitive and preferable to an experienced rider, some riders, such as novice riders, may undergo difficulties in steering a scooter due to a lack of skill. There is a learning process during which a rider learns to shift their weight laterally an appropriate distance and with an appropriate speed to achieve a desired turning. During this process, a novice rider may shift their weight too far or too rapidly, or in other cases not far enough or not fast enough, leading to over or understeering.
Prior to production, the biasing element is selected based on the turning characteristics desired for the foot-deck-based vehicle. While a biasing element that exerts a relatively small biasing force may be suitable for a rider of a smaller weight, it may not be suitable for a larger rider. Similarly, a biasing element that exerts a relatively large biasing force may be suitable for a rider of a larger weight, it may not be suitable for a smaller rider. A mismatch between the rider's weight and skills and the biasing element may cause a novice rider to fall off the foot-deck-based vehicle because the foot-deck-based vehicle is turning more or less rapidly than anticipated, possibly causing the rider to sustain injuries.
Attempts at mitigating such risks have included implementing steering lock mechanisms in scooters to permit riders to lock out and unlock the steering capability of such scooters. However, a scooters configured to have locked out steering (i.e., configured to be capable of being driven in a straight line only) may be dangerous, depending on the terrain that may be available to a rider. For example, where the terrain includes hills, traffic, and other obstacles, a scooter configured to move in a straight line only may be dangerous in that it may not allow a rider to avoid or adjust for such obstacles.
Foot-deck-based vehicles designed for novice or otherwise less capable riders may use steering mechanisms that are relatively less responsive to a rider's steering movements, to reduce a risk of abrupt or otherwise dangerous steering motions that may cause a novice rider to fall or to fail to avoid an obstacle. However, such foot-deck-based vehicles may have disadvantages. For example, where a novice rider uses such a foot-deck-based vehicle regularly and with time becomes more advanced, he or she may desire a vehicle having scooter may become insufficiently interesting to the rider and the rider may need to buy a new scooter to remain entertained.